Starting From The Bottom
by Dante Apollyon5680
Summary: The Story follows a boy named Aiden Divinita who is the strongest son of Poseidon in history. Ironically, he's also a hero who goes by the name "Neptune". Like the original series by Rick Riordan, the boy lives with his mother and step father, however what happens when his abusive step father tries to kill his mother after a misunderstanding? Rated M for mature Audiences.
1. Chapter 1

**I**

**~Aiden~**

For most of my life, I've been different. I mean, besides my body always being at 130 degrees fahrenheit all of the time, I'm also unnaturally strong and fast. Due to those problems, I'm constantly drinking water, usually around 3 gallons a day, and I always want to be in cold, possibly freezing temperatures in order for my body to cool. I was born July 19th of the year 2000 at 10:30 PM. Since the age of 7, I've been waking up not remembering who I am, or even where I was, despite the numerous Psychologists and Therapists I had to visit, it's even continued to this day. Another problem that doesn't help with this is the fact that I seem to always wake up in some forest, looking directly at the moon and being surrounded by a bunch of wildlife. Usually, I'm also near some form of large body of water, which is nice, but on some occasions, I'd wake up and feel as though I was supposed to do something, but could never figure out what.

In my mind, I was kind of like a computer in the sense that I had to boot-up in the morning and figure out who I was and where I was. I was just searching my data base on my life a bit longer than most people should, even at such a young age. When I was a child, I always wanted to believe there was a God out there who helped people. I wanted to believe that for some reason, people weren't just hurt for the hell of it. What I didn't realize, however, was the fact that my belief in God was misguided. Sure, I may have been fond of the idea that the truth to the world and it's many civilizations was like how many people believed before Christianity and Catholicism became a more prominent religion, but that was before I met the people who ruled the Earth before there was just "One God".

I was born of Scott's-Irish as well as Spanish and Italian decent. A little over 2000 years ago, the name Divinità was given to my ancestors as a way of worshiping them as Gods. Because of this worship, my ancestors took on this name and it soon became the family name. My mother never really talked about the Divinità family, or who we were before coming to America where, as far as I know, I'm the last with this name. Besides my mother, who changed her last name to St. Joseph after marrying my step father who was a man I never got along with or even wanted to leave alone with my mother. This was because the man was a raging alcoholic who was both verbally and physically abusive to both of us. However, we both didn't know he was abusive to the other person until I turned 11 when my mother sent me to a summer Camp in Southern California.

**~July 19th, 2011~**

**~2 Years Prior to Present Day~**

_Ugh..._I thought to myself as I got out of a fetal position that I'd been sleeping in. I didn't have an idea of why I was sleeping like that, or even why I was surrounded by trees with the moon shining directly above me as if trying to entice me to chase it, but I could see the sun starting to rise and decided that it might have been best I went home and saw my mother before we left to go to the beach for the day. This was probably one of the few times my step-dad wouldn't go with my mom somewhere, which was only due to him not liking to go to anywhere that smells like the sea, which for some reason, I smelt like.

After deciding that I should probably go back home, I jumped into the air, trying to find which direction I had to run home to. Sadly, there wasn't a forest next to my house, or even remotely near my house by at least 10 miles, which mean that I had to sprint all the way home if I wanted to make it before my mom woke up. After a couple more seconds of being in the air, I noticed a sign a little over 4 miles from where I was that read "Oak View California" I was glade I was still in the same forest, but for some reason, whenever I woke up, I was in a different spot of the forest.

After landing back on the ground, I got down into a sprinter's position, then waited a few seconds before I took off, running past each tree within a split second. It wasn't even a full minute before I'd made my way out of the forest and was running home. Like usual, when I got home, I was able to get inside without triggering the alarms that were placed all around the house in order to keep burglars out of the house. I ran into my room, getting ready to try and catch my breath when I found my mom sitting on my bed, holding a silver trident a little less than 6 feet tall. I stared between her and the trident, then down at myself as I realized I was still wearing my black hooded-trench coat, dark grey cargo pants, black long-sleeve t-shirt and my brown and black hiking boots.

"Do you mind explaining this, Aiden?" She asked me in a serious tone I'd rarely heard her speak in. I knew at that moment that I was caught. I wasn't going to be able to play it off as some sort of cosplay. My mother had found out that I was a the masked hero that had been on the news recently. Someone who'd been saving people for over a year now. The same person who'd been fighting Gang and Mafia members in order to keep people safe. I looked down at the floor as I whispered something inaudible to her. "Hmm?" She asked, still trying to get me to talk about the other part of my life.

"I-I'm Neptune..." I stuttered. After I said this, I heard the clang of metal on the wooden floor as my mother ran up to me and hugged me tightly. If it wasn't for my dense bone structure, I was sure she would have snapped by spine and a few of my ribs from her hug. "I'm sorry, Mom, but I couldn't stand by and watch people get hurt. People don't deserve to get hurt for no reason by those bad people." I told her, but only felt tears stream down her face and onto my coat. "I know baby. That's how your family is. We can't stand watching other's have any form of injustice brought upon them. We all believe that people should get what they deserve, regardless of whether or not it's good or bad. We always want Justice to prevail." She said, her voice stuttering a couple times because of her tears.

"I didn't want you to find out..." I told her softly. She leaned away from me a bit, looking into my eyes with a determination that I'd never seen before. "I'm your mother. Of course I'm going to find out. I love you with my entire being, Aiden." She told me, leaning forward and planting a kiss on my forehead. "Now, let's go make some breakfast then we can go to the beach today." She said, smiling at me warmly. I couldn't help, but to smile back at her. "Now, why don't you change your clothes and get a shower while I make some breakfast for the two of us. We'll be leaving before Kenny wakes up, so hurry." She told me, and I started to wonder why she wanted to leave before he woke up. I mean, I knew he hit me quite a bit and was verbally abusive to both of us, but other than that, I didn't know why else she'd just want to leave before he woke up, especially since I knew she didn't know about the things he'd done to me...

I shuddered at the flood of memories of my time with Kenny before I grabbed a pair of clothes then went into the bathroom to take a shower. From the shower, I could hear my mom humming to herself as she began cooking what smelt like rice and eggs with ham and cheese. Immediately I knew she was cooking her signature rice omelets which I always enjoyed eating since it was my favorite food. However, as I was finishing my shower, I heard the door to her and Kenny's room burst open followed by my mother and the man screaming at one another. "Stop it Kenneth! I told you before you can't do this while Aiden's home! Wha..." She was about to finish her sentence when suddenly, there was a loud SMACK followed by something hitting the floor before whimpering. I immediately jumped out of the shower, still naked, as I ran into the kitchen to find Kenny standing over my mom, holding a knife with my mom on the floor, bleeding from the back of her head. Because of her shirt and pants being ripped, I noticed the scars that adorned her body. From her chest and all the way down to her knees. Even various parts of her arms were covered in scars.

Suddenly, I felt something stir inside of me and knew that I knew were my powers becoming out of control. I could feel the temperature of the air drop as all of our breaths could be seen in the still air, with the addition of my natural body heat. When Kenny turned around to look at me, he gave me a sadistic grin that made it clear he was going to continue with our "play dates". My mother on the other hand looked at me as if she was trying to plead to me to leave before things got worse, but I didn't care. At that moment, I was completely angry at myself for not noticing the fact that Kenny was not only hurting me, but he was hurting my mother. "Oh, are you ready for more little man? I told you that if you fought back I'd hurt your mother. Do you want your mom to get hurt some more?" He asked me, but for a split second, I could see the fear in his eyes.

All around me, my body was glowing a dark green as the ground began to shake violently. Cracks could be seen forming all around us and without a seconds hesitation, I surged forward and grabbed Kenny by the neck, lifting him a foot off of the ground. I began to squeeze his neck and within a few seconds, his face went from a bright red to purple as his airways were blocked off. He then took out an all to familiar bronze and silver knife with a black leather handle that he'd used before to hurt me. He took the blade and stabbed it into my arm, causing a chain reaction of pain to surge from my arms and legs into the rest of my body. All of the places he'd either cut or stabbed was now burning with so much pain that I felt like I was on the verge of collapsing.

I then felt my blood seep from my mouth. I looked back at him and made an attempt to say one last thing before both of us either blacked out or died. "N-No one...H-hurts... m-my Mom." After I said this, I used the last bit of my strength to squeeze his neck until I heard an audible snap before I collapsed onto the ground as my vision went black. When I opened my eyes, I noticed I was in a car, my head resting on some random woman's lap and it was now night time. I looked up at her, trying to figure out why I was in the car with this strange woman before I realized that she was my mom. I then sat up, rubbing my head as my previous actions began to flood into my head, forcing me to remember everything that happened as well as all of the pain that I'd gone through physically and emotionally hours prior to my waking up in that car. "Are you okay baby?" She asked, turning her head to look at me for a moment. I stared at her for a moment, trying to figure out why she was acting like she was worried about me when she was the one that had more cuts and bruises than I did.

I shook my head 'No' before I took a deep breath. "Why are you asking ME that?! I should be the one asking YOU that! HOW LONG HAS HE BEEN HURTING YOU?! W-Why didn't I realize it sooner...? Why am I such a failure as a son...?" I screamed before gradually blaming myself for each of the things he'd done to her. I looked down at the floor as I felt tears well up in my eyes before I felt a hand touch my cheek softly. "Aiden, you can't help everyone. Even with your speed and strength, you can't help everyone. I know that's hard for you, but you need to realize that not everyone can be saved." She spoke softly to me, but I didn't want to listen to her. I was her son, yet I couldn't save her from someone as weak as Kenny.

"Aiden, I'm happy you saved me from him. I wish I didn't have to marry him, but I did. I married him so I could keep you as safe as possible. I needed to keep all of those _things_ away from you." She said. That immediately brought my attention back to her. "What things? Mom, what are you talking about?" I asked her, causing her face to darken in the dim light of the radio. "Aiden, I need to tell you something. Something that I didn't want you to know, but I might as well tell you now before we reach New Rome." She stopped, letting part of what she said sink in before she continued. "The Roman Gods are real. In fact, so are the Greek Gods, but the Romans don't know that. It should stay that way until the Gods decide otherwise." Again, she stopped, letting everything sink in.

"Your father is one of the strongest Gods known to the Greek and Roman world. His name is Neptune and he's the King of the Seas as well as the God of the Oceans, Seas, and other bodies of water. Years ago, there was a war between Neptune and his brothers Jupiter and Pluto that caused both World War I and World War II. In this battle, all of the children of those three Gods fought one another to prove who's children were stronger. When the war ended, each of their children had killed one another and they made a pact to not have children with mortals again. You're father wasn't supposed to have you, but he did and I know that his brothers won't be happy about him breaking his promise. You need to realize that everything in all of the mythologies or legends that have been told hold some truth. Monsters, Gods, demi-gods, and other things that have been talked about are real and I'm taking you somewhere where you might be safe. You can learn more about your past and who you are there." When she finished talking about my being my biological father's mistake and the fact that I might now have to fight for my life against monsters and Gods, I felt completely overwhelmed.

I mean, sure I was glade to know that those things I've seen and heard throughout my life weren't just hallucinations, but that was also something that made me scared. All of those things that have tried to kill me, or watched me throughout my life were real. I wasn't crazy, but I might be driven crazy with all of the things that I might be forced to fight now. "So, I'm not supposed to exist." I said softly. My mom turned to look at me, her eyes filled with hurt as she seemed to struggle with what she should say. "No, you're supposed to be the key to ending this feud between your family. The Gods need to know that not all children of the three brothers are a danger to Olympus. You need to show them that you're not like your siblings and your cousins. You need to show them how loyal to your family you are. Show them the real you. I know they'll come to love you almost as much as I do." She smiled as she said this to me. I didn't know what else to say, so I kept quiet for the rest of the ride.

After a few hours, the sun was just about to rise as my mother suddenly said, "We're here." I looked around where we were to find a large river running straight in front of us. On the other side of the river, probably half a mile, were two people in a set of bronze and gold armor wielding what appeared to be a bows and arrows. Behind them was what appeared to be an entire army of people, each wielding a sword and shield, a spear and shield, bows and arrows, or other weapons. They seemed to part for another person who was on a carriage being drawn a pair of mechanical wolves. One being silver while the other being gold. Suddenly, there was a loud bang as I felt something hit the back of our car, throwing it into the river. I looked over to my mom to see that she had hit her head on the steering wheel, causing her to black out. I looked behind me to see a group of large monsters making their way towards the river where the car was now sinking into.

A few of the monsters appeared to be overly large men with beer belly's and were at least two stories tall, or 20 feet tall. One of them appeared to be walking towards the water, grinning at me as he surged towards the car at an abdominal fast rate. I began to panic when I noticed another one of the giant men wielding a literal lightning bolt, getting ready to hurl it towards my mother and I. Although, I was more fearful for my mother than myself. I was more afraid of the man surging towards us than the man wielding the lightning bolt. For some reason, it was as if my fear for the giant coming towards the car was almost ingrained into me.

Suddenly, I began to feel the cold water seeping into the car start to create steam as it touched my body. I reached over to my mom's seat belt and ripped it off of her in one swift motion before kicking open my door, sending it flying into the water giant's face, then dragged my mom out of the car and towards the other side of the river. Within a few seconds of exiting the car, I was already on the other side of the river, surging out of the water flying a few feet in the air before I landed onto the ground holding my mom bridal style in my arms. I walked up the the person in the chariot and placed my mom before them, tell the person to keep her safe.

Before the person could say anything, I ran forward, reaching behind me inside my jacket and pulled out a silver rod, that as soon as I pulled it out, became a silver 6 foot trident. In a matter of seconds, I was running to the edge of the river, then lept across it and towards the miniature army on the other side. As soon as I was across the river, I began thrusting and swinging my trident with so much speed that none of the giant black dogs, six headed dragons, or even giant men could keep up with my movements. Within a matter of seconds, I'd dispatched most of the army leaving a few of the Giants who I didn't get around to killing.

As I made my way towards a cowering Giant trying to throw lightning bolts at me, I noticed the water Giant surge out of the water wielding a much more rugged trident that was completely black. The Giant took a few steps towards me and as I looked at him, I felt every cell in my body scream for me to run away from him. "Sea Spawn, today's the day you're given a choice. Either join me and my brothers against the Gods just as your siblings once did, or be forced to watch all of those you love die before you yourself are subjected to a punishment worthy of Tartarus himself." As the Giant spoke, I felt as though my strength was fading. Finally, as the Giant stood before me, towering over me, I could tell that I wasn't going to win. This man would kill me instantly if I tried to fight him. However, as I looked into his eyes, I noticed a bit of fear. He was afraid of _me_ more than I was of him.

"I choose option 3." I told him as I reversed my grip on my trident. "Oh? And what option would that be?" He said, speaking in a tone that made it seem like he'd gotten the upper hand. "I'm going to kill you, then I'm going to kill your brother here. When I'm done killing each of you, just like I did your other brothers and your army, I'm going to piss on your grave." I told him, causing his face to contort with anger as he shoved his trident into the ground of where I had stood before, but soon realized I wasn't there. His brother tried to look around, trying to look for me, but couldn't. I tapped on his cheek with my trident, causing him to look at me before I plunged it into his neck. "H-How could I die to a demi-god?! O-Only Gods and demi-gods together can defeat a Giant!" He croaked out as a mixture of brown and gold ash seemed to flow from his would before he fell to the ground in a heap of ash.

Only after his brother died did the water Giant finally notice me. "YOU BASTARD!" He screamed at me, rushing towards me. He shoved his large trident into the ground, hitting my leg and making a large gash where my kneecap had once been. I looked at my wound and noticed that the black trident was also imbued with some kind of poison that reminded me of Kenny's knife as it sent pain shooting throughout my entire body. The Giant began to smile at me before laughing manically. "Ah, I see you can feel the venom in my blood coursing through your veins now. Good. Now you'll be paralyzed within a few moments and witness the death of your dear mother. Maybe I'll rape her right in front of you because of your insolence? How does that sound, _boy_?" The Giant said. I could feel my body getting ready to give out as I continued to lean on my trident for support.

As a last ditch effort, I threw my trident at the Giant, hitting him in the chest where hit heart was. The Giant's smile soon faded as he looked at the object protruding from his chest. All of a sudden, the Giant let out an ear piercing scream before he to fell into a heap of ash. I raised my hand to my trident, willing to it fly over to me, before I walked towards the water. When I reached the water, I got inside of it, resting for a moment as I felt my leg heal before I shot to the other side of the river to check on my mother. When I reached the other side, I looked around at the army who stared at me before I felt someone wrap their arms around me. I looked up to see my mom hugging me a lot tighter than she had earlier that morning. She was even crying profusely as she was speaking incoherently.

The person in the chariot, who I realized wasn't even taller than me, despite being the leader of the army, walked towards my mother and I before stopping a few feet in front of us. "I must congratulate you, Son of Neptune. I've never seen someone fight like you did back there. Taking on a group of Giants and other monsters by yourself? I'd say you're either extremely courageous or you're just incredibly stupid." The person spoke in a feminine voice and when they removed their helmet, I found myself face to face with a girl around the age of 11 with long, jet black hair, piercing brown eyes, and lightly tanned skin. She was about 4 feet 7 inches tall, while I was roughly 5 feet 3 inches tall. "How did you know I was a son of Neptune?" I asked her, still a little tired from my battle. She just rolled her eyes and mumbled something about guys being idiots. "Follow me. I'll be taking you and your mom into New Rome. You will be placed in one of the Cohorts while your mother will be living in the city of New Rome. With your skills, you will probably be made a General of the First Cohort, the most elite fighting force Rome has to offer." As she started walking off, talking as she went, my mother and I followed her through the sewer-like system and into a large area surrounded by different buildings that were a mixture of being both modern and ancient.

To the East of where we came from, there was a large city filled with people around the ages of infancy all the way into their elderly age. When we got to a circular area that surrounded the area, a stone statue of a man walked towards us. Behind him was a large, black dutch hound that started sniffing my mother and I before becoming playful with my mother as he started jumping around her as if they were old friends. My mother just snapped her fingers, causing the dog to suddenly stop jumping and just follow beside her. The statue as well as the leader girl both looked at my mother before the leader girl started speaking. "Who are you, miss?" She asked my mother, who looked like she was a deer caught in the headlights of a car.

"My name's Julia Divinità. I'm the daughter of Apollo and the great grand daughter of Minerva." She said, looking at the girl. Her expression changed completely as she told the girl who she was. "Who are you?" My mother asked. The girl took a few moments to get over her initial shock of my mother's introduction before she did her own. "My name is Maria St. Claire. I'm the daughter of Bellona, the Goddess of War. I'm one of the Praetors of New Rome." She told us. It kind of seemed like Maria was pretty strict even though she was just a child like I was and yet she was being forced to be something like a Mayor of New Rome, although I thought New Rome was in Actual Rome, Italy.

Maria then looked at the statue and said something in what I assumed was Latin, but for some reason I could understand what she was saying. "_I'm taking these two to see the Council. I'm sure the Council would like to see the Son of Neptune and the Daughter of Apollo. If you notice anything outside of the city, let me know."_ She told him, to which the statue nodded it's head before going back to it's original position. "Follow me." Maria said as she walked past the statue and towards a large building located near the middle of the city. When we were in front of the building, I noticed quite a few statues of different Gods. Some of them were dressed in armor while a few of them were wearing dresses. I looked at one of the Gods who was wielding a trident similar to mine. His eyes seemed to be focused on me as I made my way inside of the building.

Suddenly, before we were able to continue into the building, Maria stopped and looked at my mother. "You and your son will need to be on your best behavior, Daughter of Apollo. As I'm sure you're aware of, the council doesn't like those who cause trouble." After she said that, she opened the doors leading into the council room and strode towards the front where an empty seat was located near one of the council members. My mother and I walked towards the front. Her expression hadn't changed since she'd begun speaking to Maria. To me, it was a little unnerving for her to be completely serious.

"Who are these two people that you've brought before us, Maria?" One of the council members asked. Like Maria, he was wearing a similar set of armor with a purple cape in the back. Most of the other council members were only wearing white togas, or a different form of the armor Maria was wearing. "The boy there is the Son of Neptune..." She began, eliciting gasps from the council as they looked at me. "... and the woman there is a daughter of Apollo. For some reason, she was able to hide the Son of Neptune from the monsters for over 10 years and has just now brought him to our borders." Some of the council members began to murmur among themselves as she said this. After a few moments, one of the older council members, maybe around the age of 42, looked at my mother and asked, "How were you able to hide him from the beasts? As you know, demi-gods have a strong scent to the beasts. Children of the Big Three included. So, how did you manage to do so for this long?" The man seemed genuinely interested in this.

I could see his eyes sparkle with some sort of curiosity towards whatever she would answer. "The truth is, I was never able to hide him. I tried for years looking for a way of keeping him safe from this until he was older, but I wasn't able to do so. Because both of us are children of the Gods, our combined scent attracted a lot of monsters. I was lucky that I trained in New Rome before becoming a mother to Neptune's son. Although, when Aiden reached the age of 6, he was fighting monsters by himself." She looked over to me as her eyes sparkled with a sort of pride that made my cheeks redden.

"You say he's been fighting monsters since the age of 6? Do you know what monsters he's faced?" The man asked, again completely intrigued by what he was hearing. "He's been fighting numerous types of monsters ranging from your standard hell-hound to Giants. Before we entered the city, he fought an entire army of hell-hounds, Giants, Draconae as well as Hydra's. He did so within a matter of moments." Again, her eyes shown with pride as she recalled what I'd done moments before. The council then looked at me as if I was some kind of God, which I guess I was considering Neptune was my father.

The man who I assume was the other Praetor looked at me as if I was some kind of menace. As he glared at me, I got the feeling that he was going to be a problem later on. "Well, why don't you take Aiden and his mother to the first Cohort. I believe they'd make fine additions to our Military forces." The old man said before he dismissed everyone in the room. Mom and I then followed Maria through the streets of New Rome before we made it to a large building that looked similar to the Pantheon of Greece. We walked inside to find a bunch of people around the ages of 16 to 23 walking around, probably getting ready for bed. When they noticed us, one of them walked forward and began talking to Maria. "So munchkin, who are these two? I assume you're dropping off the older one since that kid there's gonna be eaten alive in this cohort." A girl around the age of 17 said. Her light blonde hair was tied back into a bun which along with her combat fatigues made her look more like a soldier than the rest of them.

"Susan, this is Julia Divinità. She's a daughter of Apollo just like you are. The boy here is her and Neptune's son." Maria said, looking at me as she said this. Her eyes seemed to show a bit of hatred towards me, but I decided to ignore that. The girl she called Susan looked at my mom, her features softening a bit, before they quickly hardened when she turned to look at me. "Fine, the Piccola Merda's got the bed in the back. Julia, you're sleeping with him since we don't have anymore beds available. We'll try to get another bed for you tomorrow." Susan said, but my mom just shook her head. "No, I'll just sleep with that boy you just called a little shit." Mom said, glaring directly at her sister? I'm not exactly sure how this works out.

Susan flinched under her gaze before walking away. Maria then looked at my mother and I, telling us good night before she left us. Mom and I then got into the twin size bed and started to go to sleep. Out of nowhere, I heard my mom say, "Good night, Aiden. I'm sorry your birthday turned out this way." I just shook my head and mumbled, "It's okay." Before I instantly fell asleep.


	2. Chapter 2

**II**

**~Julia~**

**~Present Day~**

After two years of being apart of the First Cohort in New Rome, Aiden and I had become renown for our ability to work well with one another. I usually just said it was because of us being mother and son, but Aiden was able to work with practically anyone. We ended up saving the world from Saturn who was the Titan of Time. He was waging war against Olympus and it was the first task Aiden had in order to make the Olympians believe he wasn't a threat to Olympus. I was surprised that Jupiter didn't have a heart attack when Aiden showed the extent of his powers to the usually paranoid King of the Gods, but I was told that he'd changed a lot within just a few years. In fact, most of the Gods had since Aiden became apart of the Mythological world. Both my father and Neptune were happy to see me and Aiden.

In fact, I noticed that quite a few of the Gods were happy to see Aiden, although I was told that unlike for their children, the Gods had been watching Aiden since he was born. Everyone knew about his existence and waited to see how he'd turn out. When he came to see the Gods after his fight with Saturn, he was awarded a single wish, which he used to let the Titans who'd support Olympus, or at the very least wouldn't harm Olympus or her people in anyway free. This was a surprise to some of the Gods who thought it was odd that a demi-god wouldn't wish to be made a god, or at least get more power, but other's thought it was extremely nice of him to do so.

The two Gods that were the happiest with Aiden's wish were Diana and Apollo. My father and his twin sister's mother, Leto, was a Titaness who was imprisoned because she wouldn't fight for her siblings or even for the Gods in the first Titan War. There were still a few Titans who refused to be at peace with the Gods, but they were either still imprisoned or they were in hiding somewhere. The Gods had granted me immortality after the war with Kronos and I was appointed to one of the Leaders in New Rome. Aiden on the other hand continued going on quests and studied whenever he could. He also trained with his father and Mars whenever he could. When it came to studying, he studied with none other than the Goddess of Wisdom herself, Minerva. Minerva quickly found that unlike most of Neptune's children, Aiden was inherently smart. Neptune found that Aiden was capable of matching him in terms of raw power and ability when it came to the domain they shared. Mars, however, found that Aiden was proficient in every weapon he was given and was even a lot stronger and faster than him or any other God.

Despite how much better Aiden seemed at everything, he never made a point in shoving it in anyone's face. Aiden always treated everyone with respect, regardless of who they were. This was something that made me as well as other's look up to him, despite his young age. However, as I watched him grow up, I noticed how many people were starting to grow attached to him.

First, Maria was starting to try and get his attention by challenging him to fights that he'd intentionally lose. This caused her to boast about her ability to beat the child of Neptune before she'd do something like grab his hand with hers and jump into the air. She'd also pounce on him out of nowhere, and while I know he could hear her, I believe he enjoyed being around her. Then there were quite a few of the Gods and Titans themselves that grew attached to him. He was only 13 when some of them started to try and sleep with him, while others wanted to be with him in a pure relationship. The one that tried both, however, was Venus who strongly believed that Aiden was the perfect man, despite still being a young boy.

Despite all of their sexual advances, Aiden didn't seem to notice any of it, or if he did, he took it as they were trying to mess with him. He was a pretty innocent child. When I asked him what he thought of all of them, he said he loved them like he loved me. All of them were his family members who he cherished with his entire being. Although I was happy he didn't think about them like a normal teenager would, I was for some reason disappointed he thought of me like family. _I need to ask Venus about this._ I'd usually think to myself whenever this strange thought would pop into my head. Sadly, for the past few months, I haven't been able to do so since either she's been busy or I've been busy.

After a few months, I still hadn't seen Aiden since he left for his mission, so I went to the Gods in order to find out what had happened to him. As it turns out, I wasn't the only one with this thought because as soon as I opened the Throne Room doors I found that Maria was here too. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T KNOW WHERE HE IS?! THE OLYMPIANS ARE SUPPOSED TO BE THE STRONGEST OF THE GODS AND YET YOU DON'T KNOW WHERE ONE DEMI-GOD IS?!" She was screaming at Jupiter who looked as though he was scared of her. When I got closer, I realized why he and the rest of the Gods looked that way.

Maria was emitting an aura that made it seem as though she was capable of tormenting everyone who apposed her. I looked at Minerva who was looking at me as soon as I entered the room and found that she looked fearful of the demi-god too. _'It's her mother's gift to her children. Every child of Bellona is given the voice of war, or the ability to instill fear into your foes through your own voice.'_ She said inside my head. Even though she was speaking to me telepathically, I noticed that her voice was still shaking.

"WELL?!" Maria screamed, looking around the room until her eyes met mine. I could see that her usual light brown eyes were now tinted with red, but soon returned to normal as soon as her gaze met mine. "Sorry you had to see that Ms. Divinità. I'm just a little mad that they still haven't found Aiden yet." As soon as she said this, I felt a bunch of emotions run throughout my body. One being anger. Another being disgust. However two were very prominent. Both my fear and sadness that Aiden was missing showed as I felt my eyes widen and tears began to form in my eyes. Just before a tear could fall, I noticed a flash where Pluto would usually sit at his throne followed by a voice sounding like Pluto's yelling at the Council Members. "Aiden's in Tartarus! He's been captured by Oceanus and the Giants..." Pluto was about to finish when he took notice of the other Gods as well as Maria and I staring at him. Suddenly, the tears that I felt threatening to fall began to stream down my face as I fell to the ground and began to cry.

After a few moments of crying, I felt a couple hands on my back and shoulders. When I looked up, I noticed that Maria, Diana, Juno, Venus and Neptune were looking at me with tears of their own. I knew why Neptune was crying. Aiden was our son and was captured and taken to a place we couldn't go into without coming back insane, if we came back at all. Venus and Maria I knew loved him while I'd gotten the feeling that Juno loved him like a son. However, Diana was the Virgin Goddess of the Hunt, the Moon, and Maidenhood. She wasn't someone to feel bad about a boy, or man being harmed. If there was a girl or woman being hurt, she'd do what she can for them, but for her to feel sorry for Aiden? I was completely caught off guard.

"It's okay. We'll figure something out. I promise we'll get Aiden back." I heard Maria say and as I looked into her eyes, I knew she was right. Her eyes were full of so much determination that I couldn't help but to just believe her. "Okay." I said to her. "Well, we know that Aiden's in Tartarus, but who are we up against? Do we know where in Tartarus he's being held? Also, can we just flash in there and grab him before anyone notices?" Jupiter asked, taking charge of the situation after my and Maria's little outburst. "As far as I know brother, he's held in the deepest part." Pluto began and I knew that if we all worked together, we'd get my son back from Tartarus.

**~Time Skip~**

**~2 years after the Initial Search for Aiden~**

**~?~**

As I walked around the familiar black walls of a cave I'd been living in for the past few hundred years, I looked at the two pairs of wings I'd been given during my time in this hellhole I call "Home". Sure, I had a home back on the surface, but I've been gone for too long. From what I knew, I figured everyone I knew had withered away and died. Since my imprisonment had begun, I'd been forced to fight for my life on a constant basis. I'd been fighting random Titans, Giants, Cyclopes, Hell-hounds, and any other monsters that I happen to come across. What surprised me was the fact that after I killed Kronos for the 4th time, a part of him was transferred into my body.

I asked one of the only people in Tartarus I trusted what had happened to me and all she could say was I was now part Titan. She told me that if I kept killing Titans, then I'd become more and more like them, but I'd also be taking their powers and domains. Sadly, not even a few days later, the rest of the Titans in Tartarus led an army straight to my home and destroyed it. They blew up my cave and caused it to be buried underneath a bunch of rubble. Now, I was mad that I lost my cave, but I knew I could get a new house. Probably one in the coldest region of Tartarus, but as soon as one of them made the mistake of saying that they'd harm my mother and the rest of the people I cared for, I snapped.

When I was younger, I took on a little less than half of the amount of people I did when I fought them and it took me a few moments to do. Sure, I was 11 years old at the time, now I'm around 630 years old, but that doesn't matter. All I knew what I was angry and they were going to die permanently. So, as my vision went black, I charged at the army and killed everyone besides the Titans who were then looking at me as if _I_ was the monster, which I couldn't disagree with. They'd finally made me snap. All of the torment I'd received from Tartarus, Oceanus, and even everything that wanted a piece of me, then finally the threat on my loved ones had caused me to change. At that moment, I decided that the boy I'd used to be was gone. No one I cared about was going to get hurt.

When I was done torturing each of the Titans until they were little more than bloody messes on the ground, I ripped each of them apart with my bare hands. As they're body began to fade from view, not becoming ash like monsters did when they died, I felt each of their powers surging into my being. Lying on the ground where each Titan was killed was either a weapon or a shield. I walked over and plucked a giant spear that was originally Oceanus', but he was now dead so it's mine now. The spear was capable of forming a silver and gold trident with rounded pronged tips and multiple serrated edges. Near the bottom of the trident's prongs were two pieces of metal bent downwards. At the very bottom of the trident was two circular pieces of metal that were on the sides of a small pointed edge. Near the top of the trident was a handle about a foot and a half long with a silver sphere on each end. The middle of the handle had two pieces of wire that crossed each other until each side of the handle looked like it was sewn on.

Honestly, I thought it looked amazing. Hyperion had left behind a large shield that was able to shrink down into a silver gauntlet. The shield itself retracted out of this gauntlet and was almost completely black until I used some of my energy and put it into the shield, causing it to light up until it was as bright as the sun. The shield itself was incredibly durable, probably because like everything else that was left behind, it was made from a form of metal only found in Tartarus. Tethys left behind a few small daggers for me. Each dagger had the ability to change shape, but only into a different form of dagger or knife. Kind of sucked, but if I threw them, I was instantly given more. This was kind of cool since it meant that I had an unlimited supply of daggers on hand. Finally, the Titan Epimetheus left me a large bow that stood at 6 feet 3 inches to my now 6 feet 1 inch. The bow was entirely black with small light blue gems around the handle. The edges of the bow were curved outwards in a possible attempt to create a re-curved longbow.

When I pulled back the string, I noticed a light blue arrow form and when I slowly released the string, the arrow disappeared. When I pulled the string back again, this time taking aim at a hell-hound a few miles away from me, I released the string and watched as the arrow flew towards the hell-hound at an almost impossible speed. Within a matter of seconds, the arrow had crashed into the hell-hound and caused it to drop to the ground. I ran over to inspect the hell-hound and noticed that it was yelping in pain before it suddenly stopped moving, then crumbled into ash on the ground. "Well, this bow is over powered... I love it." I said aloud, looking at the bow before slinging it on my back. My new weapons were quite cool, especially since I now had a new Trident since my last one had broke during my time here. I looked around Tartarus and decided that it was probably time that I left.

I shot into the air and flew towards the Palace of Night where Nyx lived with her now dead husband. When I got to the front door, I knocked on it rhythmically and waited for a few moments. When the door opened, Nyx looked at me as her eyes widened. "Aiden?!" She exclaimed, to which I nodded. "Yeah, although I hope you forgive me. I may or may not have killed your husband a few minutes ago." I said, showing her the shield I picked up from him. Her eyes began to water as she surged forward and wrapped her arms around me and began to hug me tightly. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" She exclaimed, squeezing me until I began to feel the breath being forced out of my lungs. "You're welcome. Now that he's dead, why don't you join me up top? I'd love to be able to spend time with you Nyx." I said, giving her a warm smile that she seemed to love.

I could see her eyes shimmer with what I assumed was hope as she brought her hand to her chin in an attempt to suggest she was thinking about it. Within a moment, she latched back on to me and planted a kiss onto my lips. "Of course, Aiden. You should know by now I'll go anywhere you do." She said, winking at me before she went back inside, gesturing for me to follow. I raised my eyebrow at her sudden sign of affection towards me, but decided to not pursue an answer right at that moment. "Do you need to grab anything before we go?" I asked her, to which I heard her answer from inside her room on the second floor of her palace. "Yeah. I'll be done in a few minutes, then we can go." She exclaimed from the floor above me. As she was packing, I sat my bow and spear next to the fireplace in the living room before I sat down next to the pitch-black fire that was burning inside of her palace. Because the fire was black, it made the entire room almost negative 15 below, which was one reason why I always liked to sleep here whenever I could.

As I sat down, I began to question why she'd kissed me and how I felt about her. I mean, she's beautiful with her her long, pitch-black hair, her soft, pale skin, her slender figure that had a few curvy areas like her chest, her hips, and finally her ass. The clothes that she normally wore would usually hug her figure perfectly which in itself made her completely attractive. Also, whenever I was around her, I felt happy. She was the only thing down here that made me feel human, or at least made me feel anything other than hate. After the many years that I'd been down here, I was able to get to know her. First off, like me, she loved the cold, but she also loved to get close to me because of the fact that I was really hot. She enjoyed reading books about the typical hero saving the damsel in distress and loved reading other romance novels. There was also a mysterious air about her that I found out was because of the fact that her aura, and her domain, created mystery. It was the fear of the unknown that people feared during the Night time, which she was the God of.

Because she was the Goddess of Night, it meant that she usually received a bad reputation since she created the hell-hounds, but the hell-hounds weren't supposed to be evil beings. As it turned out, hell-hounds were her version of the dogs she couldn't have since they'd be killed instantly in Tartarus. Due to Tartarus' influence, the hell-hounds had become evil and started attacking humans, demi-gods, and everything else. She was pretty sad that the hell-hounds had become the way they were, but she couldn't do anything about it. I ended up promising that at some point I'd fight Tartarus and make sure her hell-hounds were free of his influence.

After a few minutes of thinking, I heard Nyx come out her room and was currently heading down the stairs. "Ready?" I asked her as I got up from my spot on the couch. "Yep. Ready when you are." She said, smiling at me as she was carrying a small bag filled with who knows what. "Alright, let's get going then." I said, grabbing my bow and spear, then walking towards her and wrapping my right wings around her before I used my new Titan powers to flash into the Throne Room on Olympus. When Nyx and I suddenly appeared, we were interrupting what I assumed was an important meeting since all of the Gods were present. I looked around the room and noticed that some demi-gods as well as people who I assumed were demi-gods, but had no idea who they were, were also present. Suddenly, I felt a couple of people crash into me with the force of a freight train.

"Aiden!" I heard a couple of people scream as I was knocked to the floor with a couple of people on top of me. As I looked up at the people who had attacked me, I noticed that Maria, Mom, Venus as well as a few others had attacked me. _Wait... is this Diana?_ I thought to myself as I looked at the familiar silver eyed, auburn haired Goddess of the Hunt. For some reason, she was one of the people pouncing on me as soon as I showed up. I didn't really want to question it further than her just being a friend, which still didn't make sense. Diana didn't have male friends. She's _NEVER_ had a male friend.

I decided to pick them all up and set then down, waiting for them to settle down as I began talking to the booming voice in the throne room. "Aiden! It's good to see my favorite nephew alive and well! We heard you were captured and taken to Tartarus, can you tell us what happened and why Lady Nyx is here as well?" Jupiter asked me, to which I complied. It wasn't like I really had anything to hide, even the fact that I was now a Titan and had Titan powers along with their weapons. "Well, I have one thing to tell you, but I think the Fates should be the ones to tell you about that and I'll just fill in anything else that happened." I tell him, causing him to nod his head. "First, I'm around 630 years old now. Also, I kind of thought everyone was dead since I'd been alive for that long. Anyway, some of the Titans are now dead and have faded..." This elicited gasps from the Council Members as well as other people who were present. "...Tartarus wants my head on a platter. I also have wings now." I say, flapping my wings casually. "I also have a few new weapons, and I've gotten better at using my water manipulation abilities. Hmm... Did I miss anything else?" I turn around and look at Nyx as I ask this. "You mean besides why I'm here? No, don't think so." She replied, to which I snapped my fingers. "Ah ha! I knew I was forgetting something. Yeah, so Nyx's husband's dead, she left her Palace of Night to stay with me, Yadda Yadda Yadda. Anyway, that's about it. Now, can someone get the Fates so I can be done with this explanation of what happened?" I said, causing a white flash to envelope the entire room.

Suddenly, as the light faded, I noticed a trio of old women with knitting materials looking directly at me. "Ah, Lady Fates, it's good to see you. Are you here because of Aiden?" Jupiter asked. Honestly, it was a little weird to see the guy constantly happy, or at least less serious and ready to bite people's heads off. "Yes. Aiden Divinità is now a complete Titan, except he's not as tall as them at his current age." This caused a few of the unknown demi-gods to pull out their weapons and point them at me. The Fates didn't even look at them as they continued. "All Hail Aiden Divinità, The Titan of the Hunt, the Moon, The Oceans and Seas, The Light, the Skies and Destruction." As soon as the fates were done, I could feel the tension rise in the room. Surprisingly, it wasn't the paranoid King of the Gods that spoke first. "Wait, you're telling me this demi-god is now a Titan?! We have to kill him before he let's the other's free and brings about the end of Olympus!" One of the demi-gods screamed.

I looked over to where there was a group of demi-gods wearing Ancient Greek armor and immediately deduced that the Greeks were finally going to meet the Romans. "Yeah, you wish you Piccolo Merda. Jupiter as well as the rest of the Gods here know that I'm devoted to helping my family and keeping them safe. Sadly that also includes the ones that want me dead." I said to the boy before turning back to the Gods. "So, yeah. I'm a Titan now and currently in need of a job, if anyone's hiring." I said, looking around the room. So far, no one was hiring, or at the very least were willing to hire a Titan. Jeez, such discrimination. I feel like this is racist.

"No takers?" I asked again, this time I felt someone staring at me, and when I turned to look at the person staring at me, I noticed that Venus was not-so-suddenly about to offer me a job. Or, whatever the Goddess of love offers someone of the opposite sex. "I'd be willing to pay you if you stayed with me for a while. Maybe a few centuries give or take?" Venus said, winking at me in a probable attempt to convey something that I had no idea about. "Hmm... that sounds good. Anyone else?" I replied, looking around the room once again.

"Sounds like he's auctioning himself off." I heard Demeter say as she looked at me a little hungrily. _Am I doing something wrong? I thought this was how people got jobs?_ I thought to myself before I heard a woman speak. "I wouldn't be able to pay you and you probably wouldn't be treated very well, but I'd be happy if you became a part of my Hunt." When I turned to look at the woman speaking, I felt the blood quickly leave my face. Diana was offering me a position in her hunt and even said she'd be _HAPPY_ if I joined. I really needed to see how far this "Happiness" would go with her. "What are the requirements and what would by my job be in your Hunt?" I asked her, ignoring the numerous gasps coming from the people watching this unfold.


	3. Chapter 3

**III**

**~Aiden~**

She seemed a bit shocked that I was considering it, but quickly shook her head. "You'd be tasked in keeping my Hunters safe and watching over everyone in the Hunt. You'd also be required to do chores while being apart of the Hunt since no one's apart of it just for the fun of it. You're also to take part in training because I can't have someone not proficient in a bow or hunting be a part of my Hunt, especially if they share the same domain as me. You also won't be getting any days off, but since Venus seemed to be asking you to be with her for a few centuries, I'd say you're fine with that." When she finished with her long list of things I'd supposed to be doing in the Hunt, part of me wanted to agree immediately. Though, there was also a part of me that didn't like the idea of being surrounded by the Girl Scouts of America on a daily basis.

Again, I looked around the room, trying to see if anyone else had any other options, but no one said anything. It was either spend a few centuries with Venus or who knows how long with Diana and her Hunt. As I started to weigh my options, I thought of the idea of following the Moon around for all eternity. I was now the other person who was the physical manifestation of the moon, and since Diana is still the Goddess of the Moon, I might as well do what I was born to do: Follow the Moon. "Alright. Do I get a cool title as being the only male hunter? Or, is it just going to be 'Aiden Divinità: Only Male Hunter.' Honestly, I think the only thing that would make that job better would be a title." I said, eliciting more gasps from the audience. "DOES SLAVE WORK FOR YOU?! BECAUSE THAT"S WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO BE IF YOU WORK FOR HER!" I heard Venus exclaim. She was literally shaking with anger at this point. "DON'T YOU SEE THAT SHE DOESN'T LIKE YOU! I'M THE ONE OFFERING YOU THE BETTER DEAL! I JUST WANT TO BE WITH YOU! DON'T YOU KNOW HOW MUCH I'VE MISSED YOU SINCE YOU LEFT?! WHY CAN'T YOU SEE THAT I LOVE YOU!" She screamed at me, growing in size as she was about to release her true form, killing all of the mortals in the room.

I immediately ran forward, growing until I was able to wrap myself around her completely so that the mortals wouldn't be harmed. I was now a little more than twice her size as I wrapped my wings around her and curled up until the light and energy she was emitting began to subside. When she finally calmed down, she looked up at me with her wet eyes then started crying softly. I began stroking her cheek softly, causing her to stop crying for a bit, then kissed her forehead softly. When I pulled back from that, I could see that her eyes had widened in shock. I just shrunk until I was back to my human height of 6 feet 5 inches tall as she went back to her Throne, still shocked as to what happened.

The uncomfortable silence that followed a few minutes afterwards was broken when Jupiter said, "Okay, well now that the Camps are going to meet one another and we all know what we're doing, I'd say this meeting is adjured then." After saying this, he quickly flashed away, followed by quite a few of the Gods while the demi-gods just exited the Throne Room and probably headed towards the elevator down to the city. I was kind of glade that Venus was one of the first ones to leave as soon as the meeting was over. While most of the Gods and demi-gods had left, Maria, Diana, Mom, Juno, Nyx and Minerva stayed behind. The first to come see me was Minerva who just walked up to me, kissed my cheek, then left before I could say anything. The next one was Juno who said she missed me and was glade I was okay. As my mom came up to talk to me, I could see that Maria was talking to Diana about something that made it seem like they were close to starting physically fighting over.

When mom stood before me, she wrapped her arms around me and kissed my cheek. For some reason, she kept holding onto me and kissing my cheek a lot longer than she used to. I wasn't sure as to why she did that, but it was another mystery about women that I believed couldn't be explained. "I'm glade you're safe, Aiden. I'll be sure to stop by and see you everyday, okay? Be careful with Diana, alright?" She asked me, to which I just nodded. After she left, Nyx, Maria, and Diana walked up to me. "Well, let's get going then." Diana said as she grabbed my hand while Maria and Nyx held onto both of our hands. After Diana had flashed us in the middle of a camp filled with girls running around, practicing archery, feeding wolves, or doing whatever, I noticed one of them immediately fire an arrow at me. I just casually caught the arrow and dropped it onto the ground while Diana's form changed. After the light that surrounded Diana faded, I found myself holding the hand of a 12 year old little girl with dark brown hair, silver eyes, and pale skin.

Like most of the other girls here, she was wearing a hooded, brown fur jacket with grey cargo pants, black boots, and had a silver bow, quiver and knives strapped to her back and sides. "Uh... Diana?" I asked the little girl, pulling my hand away from her and stepping back a few feet. "My name's Artemis. While you're here, you should probably call me Lady Artemis, or Milady, but calling me Diana would confuse all of the newer hunters since they don't know me as Diana." She said. I guess she had a point, but I was really used to calling her Diana. Man, this would be confusing. Artemis then turned to look at her Hunters who were all glaring at me as if I'd done something bad.

"Girls, this is Maria and she's going to be your new sister." Artemis began, gesturing towards Maria who stepped forward. _Huh, I didn't know Maria was going to join the Hunt. I thought she liked that Praetor guy in New Rome. Eh, oh well. At least I have someone else I can talk to here._ I thought to myself as I watched some of the Hunters welcome Maria into their little cult. "Next, we have Lady Nyx who's going to be staying with us because of..." I could see she was struggling to say whatever reason Nyx had given her for being here. "Because I want to be around Aiden since he's my best and only friend since we met in Tartarus a couple hundred years ago." Nyx said, telling the Hunt that I was a lot older than each of then and that I was in Tartarus. _Now, if only she'd tell them I was a Titan too, then they can really start to hate me._ I thought to myself.

"Yes, well Lady Nyx will be staying with us while Aiden is here too. Aiden, why don't you step forward and introduce yourself. Tell the girls as much about yourself as you can." Artemis said, gesturing for me to step forward too. _FUCK!_ I screamed in my mind as I felt my heart beat start to pump even faster. "My name's Aiden Divinità. I'm the son of Poseidon, Titan of The Hunt, the Moon, The Oceans and Seas, the Light, the Skies and Destruction. From what Dian... I mean Lady Artemis has said, I will be working for you guys for the time being. I apologize if my being here is upsetting, but I've been given a task by Lady Artemis and I'm going to see it through to the very end." I told them, trying to say as much about myself as I could in a limited amount of time. Honestly, if I acquired any more titles, I might need a business card or something.

"Milady, you're going to allow a Titan in the Hunt? Aren't they are sworn enemies?" One of the Hunters asked. This hunter had jet black hair, pale skin, dark brown eyes, and light pink lips. She was a little taller than the other hunters and while she wore the same attire as everyone else, she also wore a silver tiara on her head. _Is she a princess or something? She kind of looks like one since she's pretty, but would a princess join a cult? I'm not exactly sure._ I thought to myself as I continued to listen to the Princess and Artemis talk. "Actually, a few years ago, Aiden freed the more peaceful Titans in exchange for them helping Olympus in time of need. He freed my mother, and for that, I'm grateful to him." She said, causing the Hunter to bow slightly. "Very well, Milady." The Princess said in a tone that suggested she was annoyed.

"Autumn, do you mind taking Maria to get her new clothes and show her where her tent is?" Artemis asked the Princess. "Yes, Milady." Autumn replied as she gestured for Maria to follow her. "The rest of you can have the rest of the night off. Aiden here will be finishing your chores and will be cooking dinner for us." Artemis said, eliciting cheers among the Hunters, especially the younger hunters who started run around playing with one another.

I would be lying if I said I didn't enjoy their laughter while they played. "Aiden?" I heard Artemis say as she stood in front of me, looking up at me. "Hmm? Oh, sorry. It's just been a while since I've seen children playing. I forgot how nice it is to hear their laughter." I told her as I watched the little girls play. She turned and looked at the little girls running around, playing tag and hide and seek with one another as a smile adorned her lips. "Yeah, it is a wonderful thing to witness. I try to allow them to have the opportunity to play since their so young. That's one reason why I'm the Goddess of Children and Childbirth. I love to watch them be happy." She said before turning to look at me. "Follow me. I want to see how good with a bow you are." She said, grabbing my hand and pulling me towards an archery range where a couple of the Hunters could be seen shooting their targets.

As we walked there, I noticed that Autumn was trying to show Maria how to use a bow, but was getting frustrated whenever Maria would get ready to shoot. "Maria, why is it so hard for you to get into position? What kinds of weapons were you using in New Rome?" Autumn asked, causing Maria to look down at her new boots. "I usually used dual swords or a spear and shield..." She answered her quietly, causing Autumn to chuckle slightly. "Of course. Here, we'll take a break for now then we'll try a bit later. I'm sure that as soon as you take your Oath with Lady Artemis this will be a little easier for the both of us." Autumn said, causing both of them to start laughing until Autumn noticed Artemis and I walked towards her. She quickly bowed as she said, "Lady Artemis. I'm sorry I didn't notice you sooner. I was just teaching Maria how to use her bow." Autumn said.

"It's okay, Autumn. I'm just here to see how well Aiden can use a bow. If he's any good, then he might be of better use to the Hunt. Also, after Dinner, do you mind spending some time with him? I want my lieutenant to get to know our Slave and evaluate him to see if he's okay to be with us." Artemis said, smiling up at me warmly as she called me a slave. Honestly, I knew she was trying to butter me up for the torment of being their slave, but I couldn't help smiling back at her.

_Damn Artemis and looking like a child! My only weakness! The smiles of children!_ I screamed in my head, before looking at Autumn and seeing that she was trying not to show how angry she was for being forced to talk to me. "Yes Lady Artemis. I'll make sure I evaluate him appropriately." She said, glaring at me before walking off. I looked down at Artemis and said the only thing that came to mind. "She hates me." Artemis nodded at this. "She's not going to evaluate me fairly." Again, she just nods. "And you're okay with this? Weren't you the one that offered me the job?" I watched as she nodded once again. "I did offer you the job, but I also said that it's a thankless job and that you wouldn't be treated fairly. If you can get Autumn to open up to you, then you're going to have an easier time here. Now let's see how good you are with your bow." She said, walking towards one of the targets.

"First, I want you to shoot this dummy in the chest, preferably where the heart is, okay?" She asked, to which I replied. I stood before the raised my bow, causing Artemis to cringe, then knocked back an arrow, shooting it straight into the dummy's heart. I looked at Artemis to see her staring at the dummy, then at me, then back at the dummy, before looking back at me. "Again." She said, and once again, I knocked back an arrow then shot it at the dummy, piercing my previous arrow down the middle. "Again." This time, I kept shooting arrow after arrow straight into the dummy's chest, piercing each arrow down the middle. After about 30 arrows, she told me to do the same to the head, and when I did, I wasn't told to stop until I reached about 42 arrows into the head.

Next, I was told to shoot random points on the body that she called out. As I did this, I was able to shoot each point within a split second of her telling me to do so. She then snapped her fingers, causing a deer to appear, then told me I had to shoot it before it got away from me. I did so within a fraction of a second of when she told me to do so, dropping the deer onto the ground. "Can you skin the deer?" She asked, to which I shrugged. "First time for everything." I said as I walked towards the deer, pulling out one of my knives then kneeling down as I started gutting and skinning the deer. When I finished, I'd skinned the entire deer perfectly within a minute. "Is there anything you can't do?" She asked as she stood above me, admiring how I shot, gutted, and skinned a deer in a matter of moments. "Mmm... Yes." I replied.

"Really? What?" She asked me, looking at me curiously. "Well, I don't really understand what some people mean by certain things. Also, some of the looks that I'm given by people like Venus and Demeter." I answered her. She continued to look at me as if she was trying to figure out what I meant before her eyes widened. "Wait... you seriously don't know what flirting is?" She asked, to which I shook my head. "No, what is it?" I asked her. She continued to look at me with wide eyes before she said, "It's something you should never do with anyone. You're not supposed to act like Venus or anyone like her, okay?" She said. I nodded my head, taking what she said as law. I didn't know what she was talking about, but if she said it was bad, then it must've been bad.

"Okay, well it's time for dinner. You can go on ahead and make the girls dinner. If you see Autumn, tell her to come see me in my tent, okay?" She asked, to which I nodded. "Okay. I'll make sure to do so. See you later, Diana." I said, leaving the archery range and walking towards a tent labeled "Dinning Hall". When I entered, I looked around at all of the hunters who were waiting patiently for their food. "What would you guys like to eat? I can make anything you want." I asked them, causing an uproar of voices to exclaim what they thought they should eat. Finally, I heard Autumn from behind me say, "Venetian Pasta." This caused a bunch of agreements among the older Hunters, while a few of the younger one's asked what it was.

I nodded my head, focusing on the Hunt aspect of my Domains and conjured the meal before each of them. "Just ask if you want seconds." I told them as they began to dig in, moaning a bit as they ate their food. I turned to look at Autumn who was eyeing me skeptically. "Hey, Dia... I mean Lady Artemis said she wants to talk to you in her tent. Could you bring her a plate for me? I don't want to bother you guys during whatever she wanted to see you about." I asked, to which she nodded. I conjured a couple plates more plates for her to carry then said, "Tell her to let me know if she wants more. Also, you let me know if it's good, alright? I want to make sure everyone eats well while I'm here." I told her. She glared at me before walking away.

_Huh, did I do something wrong?_ I thought to myself as I heard some of the Hunters ask for more. "Alright. Keep the orders coming! I'll make sure you guy's eat until you're stuffed tonight!" I exclaimed as I began to conjure more food for them to enjoy. I couldn't help but to smile as I watched them enjoy the food I made. Honestly, I didn't know if anything could compare to that feeling. It kind of made me feel like their dad, or older brother. _I actually hope someday I can have a little sister. Seems like something that won't happen, but I wouldn't mind if it did._ I thought to myself as more and more people wanted thirds, fourths, and even fifths.

_**~Artemis~**_

_**~Inside Tent~**_

As I waited for Autumn to arrive, I couldn't help but to be amazed at how Aiden was. Even though he was now 17 years old, he was both mature in a sense because he was smart and intelligent, but he was immature when it came to knowing about sex, flirting, dating, and other things. If he wasn't such a fighter, I would have thought he was the second purest being next to infants. "How does someone live like that?" I asked aloud. "Live like what, Milady?" I heard Autumn say from outside my tent, causing me to jump. "You wanted to see me, Milady?" She asked as she stepped inside the tent. I gestured for her to sit down in the chair across from me.

"It's Aiden, Autumn. From what I can tell, he's not like most men that roam this planet. He genuinely cares for people, he loves children, he's amazing at practically everything he does and doesn't boast about it, and to top everything off, he doesn't know anything about flirting or even sex." I paused, letting what I said sink in. "He's oblivious to Aphrodite's attempts at getting him into bed with her. He doesn't understand why people are trying to sleep with him, and he's completely innocent when it comes to his relationships with others." I concluded my rant about him, awaiting her answer to what I'd just said. _She's probably noticed all of this too! He's the perfect man! He's willing to work hard, he doesn't harm maidens or innocent people, and he doesn't know about sex! If only I could keep him that way! _I thought to myself.

"Milady, permission to talk freely." Autumn asked. I was too excited to notice that she wasn't as excited about this as I was. "You remember Orion, correct?" She asked, causing my mood to drop. "Yes. I remember him." I answered, figuring out where she was going with this. "You took to him because of his skill for archery and hunting, letting him into our hunt under the impression that he was gay. You remember what happened within a week of him being here, right?" She asked, and all I could do was nod as I remembered my sister, Jillian, who he rapped and killed. Jillian was one of the first daughters of Zeus to join my Hunt. It was amazing having her with me, especially when my Hunt was still new.

Although, she wasn't the only Hunter that Orion had harmed. The other two Hunters committed suicide right after he was finished with them. After that, I devoted myself to searching for and killing him whenever he came back to life. I made sure they were placed in Elysium upon their death since they didn't deserve what happened to them. None of them did. None of these girls deserved what happened to them. That's why I formed the Hunt. It was supposed to be a place for maidens to go when they had nothing else in life. It was a place for them to start over and have a new family. A family that loved them and knew how to comfort one another.

"What if you're wrong about Aiden? I don't want another Orion incident happening. We're one of the only people who still remember what happened back then. None of them should go through that." Autumn said, and I couldn't help but to nod my head slowly. I wanted to believe that Aiden was different, but Orion was a son of Poseidon too and was worthy of being a son of Hermes for his knock of deception and lying. Suddenly, Autumn handed me a couple of plates of pasta that smelt amazing. Venetian Pasta, one of my favorite foods and something the Hunt rarely had to eat. "How did you make this?" I asked her as I began eating it. After just one bite, I felt as though I needed more. As I continued to eat the pasta, I heard Autumn reply to my question.

"I didn't. It was Aiden. The rest of the Hunt is currently eating the same thing. When I left, some of them were on their third serving of it. Also, Aiden said to just ask if you wanted more and something along the lines of 'making sure everyone ate until they were full' tonight. He's better than Orion in that regard." She said, and I couldn't help, but to chuckle. "Remember how he ate so much? He couldn't cook at all! Remember when he tried to roast a turkey?" She asked, and I burst out laughing. "He burnt the entire thing!" I exclaimed, laughing even harder, causing her to laugh as well. "Yes and it was pretty funny. After a few minutes of us trying to calm down, I looked down at my second plate of untouched pasta, then back up to Autumn. "Do you really think Aiden is just like Orion?" I asked her, looking back down to the pasta.

"No, I don't think he'll be just like Orion, but it wouldn't hurt to watch him just to make sure. But, at least he can cook." She said, finishing her pasta. I smiled down at the pasta before I began to devour it. Within a few seconds, I finished my plate then asked, "Do you think it would be bad to ask for more?" She just chuckled before saying, "No, but I'm sure the others have had quite a bit more than just three servings." I smiled at her before getting up. "Well, hopefully he hasn't gone back to his tent yet." I said as I made my way out of my tent. "Autumn?" I asked as I turned to look at her. "Yes, Milady?" She replied. I looked at the ground for a moment before replying. "Thank you for being my best friend for all these years. Without you, I doubt I would have been able to survive being the Goddess of the Hunt. I'm glade to call you my best friend." I told her before walking out of my tent, then started running with my dishes to the Dinning Hall in order to get some more pasta.

When I got inside the tent, I looked around trying to find Aiden, but didn't see him inside the tent. "Hmm... I guess he went back to his tent already. I should probably tell him to get ready to watch the Hunt while I'm go do my duties for the night." I said aloud. It didn't take me long to get to his tent, which looked a lot different compared to the other tents. While most of our tents were simple tents that were as large as a single room, with mine being a little larger than that, Aiden's was different. As I walked inside, I found that it was at least as large as a two story house. In front of me was a large staircase at the end of a hall. On each side of the hall was either a large living room with a polished black grand piano and a variety of instruments or had a large kitchen with two stoves, a dishwasher, multiple cabinets, a pantry, and even an area that had a large supply of alcohol.

_Why does he have so much alcohol?_ I thought to myself as I tried to find him. As I continued down the hall, I found a large bathroom with a shower that had steps leading down into what appeared to be a bathtub as well. Opposite of the bathroom was another living room, except for this room had an assortment of books, movies, and a large T.V. Instead of a variety of instruments. As I made my way up the stairs, I thought I heard someone pounding on a door. I then rushed to the end of the hall to find that the door being pounded on was locked. "Aiden?! Is that you?! You need to step back! I'm going to kick down the door!" I screamed. For some reason, I felt my heart begin to beat at an abnormally fast rate as I tried to imagine what I was going to find on the other side of this door when I kicked it down.

I stepped back a bit, then brought my foot to the door, kicking it off it's hinges and straight to the back of the room. What I didn't expect to see on the floor was Aiden holding his chest with wide eyes as he struggled to breathe. "AIDEN!" I screamed as I rushed forward, trying to examine him to find what was causing him to lose his breath. "APOLLO!" I screamed into the air. When nothing happened, I called again. "APOLLO!" Still nothing. I looked down at Aiden as tears began to stream from his face. He was trying to croak something out, but I placed a finger on his lips. "It's going to be okay. I-I just need to get you into the tub, right? You're a son of Neptune, you just need to be submerged in water to heal." I tried to put on a smile, but I could tell it wasn't working. My eyes were betraying me as I felt tears begin to stream from my face.

I wasn't even able to lift up his arm due to how heavy and hot he was becoming. Every time I tried to touch him, I would instantly recoil back as his body temperature became unbearable to me. "No, no, no, no, no! COME ON!" I screamed, trying to look around the room to find a way for me to get him help. "I'll be right back!" I screamed at him as I ran out his door and into the kitchen where I grabbed a bunch of bags of ice from his freezer. When I touched the bags, I felt as though every cell in my body was being frozen. I looked down at the bag to find that it read, "Liquid Hydrogen" I immediately groaned in pain as the freezing temperature was starting to become unbearable.

By the time I got back to his bedroom, I found that he was wheezing even more. "Hey, hey! Stay with me!" I screamed as I started opening the bags, pouring them on his body. As soon as the substance touched his skin, it immediately started to evaporate. I then opened the other bag and poured it on him. Again, the same thing happened. However, as I saw the steam in the air, I threw a coin into it. "O' Iris, Goddess of the Rainbow, show me Apollo! Please, hurry by the way!" As soon as I said this, I got a picture of Apollo talking to Athena. "Apollo! You and Athena need to get to Aiden's tent next to my camp! Aiden's dying!" I screamed, causing both Gods to jump.

"What?! Aiden's dying?! No, no, no! This can't be happening!" Athena screamed as she shot up and flashed away. Next to me, I could see something trying to flash into the room with me, but suddenly the light disappeared. After a moment, Athena burst into Aiden's room, breathing heavily. "I couldn't flash inside! Come on, we need to get him outside so we can teleport him to Apollo's Palace! Apollo, come in through Aiden's front door! We're up stairs!" Athena screamed as she reached down to touch Aiden, but shot away from him as soon as she touched him. "Why is he this hot!" She screamed. I just shook my head. "I don't know. He's always hot, but this is on a completely different degree! I tried to use liquid hydrogen, but that didn't cool him down!" I yelled at her as my head was racing. Apollo then burst through Aiden's door and said, "Come on! We need to get him out of here!"

He pulled out a pair of weird looking oven mites and threw both Athena and I a pair before putting on a pair himself. "These gloves should help with holding him! Now, let's get him to my palace!" He exclaimed, trying to grab him, but immediately dropping him. "Ah! What the fuck, Aiden?! I'm the fucking God of the Sun and yet I can't pick you up because of how hot you are!" He screamed, rubbing his hands. I decided to age myself until I was 19 years old, then picked him up, burning myself in the process, but I didn't care. "Come on! Let's go!" I screamed as I felt my skin start to blister from the heat. I followed Apollo and Athena out of the tent, and as soon as Aiden got outside, we were immediately bathed in the light from the moon. I don't know why, but his body began to cool underneath the light. As Apollo and Athena started to flash away, I suddenly stopped.

"What the hell are you doing, Artemis?! We need to go, now!" Apollo screamed, but I ignored him as I looked down at Aiden. His breathing was starting to steady as his body temperature began to cool until it was his normal 130 degree temperature. "Come here! Look at this!" I exclaimed, causing Apollo and Athena to rush over to where I was. "Wait, is his breathing even now?" Apollo asked. "Yeah. Feel his skin." I urged him. He looked up at me skeptically before bring his gloved hand over Aiden's forehead. "I don't feel it? Why don't I feel his heat anymore?! Just a second ago, his body temperature was unbearable!" He exclaimed, taking off his glove then putting his hand on Aiden's forehead again. "What happened to him?" Athena asked as she took off her glove and rubbed her hand against Aiden's cheek.

"I don't know. As soon as his body touched the moon light, it began to cool." I answered to the best of my abilities. "Wait... bring him back inside." Apollo said, gesturing for me to do so. When I did, Aiden started to become increasingly hot. "Ah!" I exclaimed, immediately bringing him back outside, causing him to cool down. "Interesting..." Apollo said, rubbing his chin slightly. "So, the moonlight is keeping him from overheating. Then that means we're going to have to keep him under a constant beam of moonlight until he can tell us what happened." He said, looking at Aiden closely. When his face got close to Aiden's, Aiden suddenly shot up, falling out of my arms and onto the ground.

"Ow! Do you mind, Aiden?! I was trying to figure out why you were overheating!" Apollo screamed at him. Aiden just looked at him briefly before turning towards me. Suddenly, he shot up and wrapped his arms around me as his eyes began to water. As steam started to form from his tears, I could hear him whispering that he was sorry. I wasn't sure what he was sorry about until I remembered that I was burned trying to get him outside. Before I knew what was happening, the vapor from his tears started to coat my entire body. As it began to soak into my skin, I noticed that the blisters and burns that I had were gradually fading away.

"Hey, it's okay Aiden. Look, my burns are gone. It's no big deal, see?" I said, feeling like I was talking to a child, which I guess in a sense I was. Aiden may have looked like a 17 year old boy, but inside, he was still the same 11 year old kid I knew just a couple of years ago. I pulled back from him and showed him my arms. "See? It's okay." I told him. I then pulled him into a hug, rubbing his back and the back of his head while I looked over at Apollo and Athena. _He's really torn up about this. Could you guys help me out?_ I thought to them. _'Eh, I don't know. Seems to me like you've got this covered. You may just have to keep holding him until everything's okay. Try going somewhere where there's more moonlight. Probably California since it's about to be 7PM over there.'_ Apollo suggested.

_'There's not much we could do to help, Artemis. Just make sure he's okay. I'll talk to his mom and see if she's dealt with this before. I'll let you know if I find anything out.'_ Athena said before she and Apollo left me trying to comfort an 11 year old in the body of a 17 year old. As soon as they left, I felt Aiden pull away from me and look into my eyes. "Thank you Artemis." He said, smiling at me warmly. For some reason, I felt my cheeks heat up as I stared at his face. My eyes then shifted to his red lips and for once in my life, I really wanted to kiss a boy. I wanted to know what it felt like. But most of all, I wanted to continue to be held by Aiden. _WHAT THE HELL AM I THINKING?! I'M THE GODDESS OF MAIDENHOOD! I CAN'T BE THINKING ABOUT THIS!_ I screamed inside of my head, mentally slapping myself for my own stupidity.

"Do you mind if I show you something?" He asked. At that moment, I don't think I could have denied him anything. As long as he was smiling, I felt like I would do anything for him. "What do you want to show me?" I asked as casually as I could, trying to get over my initial embarrassment. "Close your eyes. It's a surprise." He said. Immediately, I complied and closed my eyes. For a split second, I thought he had read my mind and was going to kiss me. I was about to lean in until I heard the sound of waves crashing against the shore of a beach. When I opened my eyes, I looked up to see that Aiden's light green eyes were sparkling as they watched the ocean rise. In the distance, I also noticed that the Moon was a lot brighter than it usually was. I doubted I was the reason why the Moon was this bright and figured that since we both shared that domain, both of our moods affected how the Moon appeared.

When Aiden sat down on the edge of the cliff above the sandy beach, I followed his example and sat next to him. As I continued to sit near the beach, I felt the coastal wind blow against me, causing my body to start shivering, even though I was wearing clothes designed for the cold. Suddenly, I felt warm, and when I looked to my right, I found that Aiden was wrapping his arm and wings around me. The warmth from his body was so amazing, that I gradually began to get even closer to him, trying to make as much of the warmth from his body reach mine. After a few moments, I started to feel a humming sensation coming from his chest before it became the sound of his voice resonating throughout the little area we were in.

"_**Cast away, your worries my dear; for tomorrow comes a new day; hold to me, you've nothing to fear; for your dreams are not far away; As you lay your head and you rest; May your dreams take over, my love; Listen close, my song of the west; for your destiny lies above; Through the world is cruel; There's a light that still shines; In the darkest days of our lives; When all hope is lost and you can't find your way; Think of me as you look to the sky; Child of mine, your future is bright; For your father's blood's in your veins; In dark times, I pray you will fight for the world will soon know your name."**_ As he was singing, I felt myself start to calm down. As the song drew to a close, I felt my eyes grow heavy before I fell asleep in his arms. My last thoughts before I fell asleep were, "_He has such a wonderful voice. I hope he sings for me again..."_

* * *

NOTE: The song sung in this story is one I found from Lizz Robinett on YouTube. I know she had done the song as a cover from an anime, however I forget which one. I'm only using this song because it fits with the story I'm writing here. I don't own the song, or any right to the song. This was used purely as inspiration for the book and nothing else.

\- DanteApollyon5680


	4. Chapter 4

**IV**

**~Athena~**

**~Aphrodite's Palace~**

Watching Artemis and Aiden together was kind of excruciating. I mean, I love both of them and yet it hurt to watch how easy she was able to get him to open up to her. Though, I guess it's because of who he is. Not many people knew, but you could tell a lot about a person just from their birthday. Because his was on July 19th, and especially since it was at night, he was drawn to the Moon. The Moon was something that everyone who was a Cancer, like Aiden, was drawn to. The Moon was Cancer's ruling planet. Since he was a cancer, it was ironic how he was the son of Neptune and was forced to be around the physical embodiment of the Moon. It was obvious he'd begin to fall for her before me, or anyone else. The last time I talked to Aphrodite, she confirmed that his love for her was growing at an abnormal rate. Since the moment they met, he's loved her above all else.

Though, it was obvious she was beginning to fall for him, too. The way she acted when he was close to dying. The fact that she allowed herself to get hurt for him was proof that she cared for him. I hope that at some point, I get the chance to tell him how I feel about him, though I don't know when that would be. I looked over at Aphrodite and Apollo, both watching the couple intensely, their gazes unfaltering as Aiden starting humming then began singing for Artemis. "How does he have such an amazing voice?" Apollo asked. Aphrodite and I both looked at him. "Do you have a crush on your grandson?" Aphrodite asked, causing him to blush. "Jeez, Apollo! Mortals don't work that way anymore! They don't go around having sex with their family! They haven't done that in thousands of years!" I screamed at him. "Wow, Athena. I see that you're pretty knowledgeable about sex. What else do you know?" Aphrodite asked, walking over to me and rubbing her hand along my shoulder.

"Aphrodite, you should stop. We're done here." I said, flashing out of her Palace and back to my own. I really didn't want to get into a conversation about sex with the Goddess of Love herself. Although, when I got back to my Palace, I started watching Aiden and Artemis again. I wasn't sure about how long I should watch them considering I'd been watching Aiden since he was a child. I don't remember the reason why I started watching him, but I just did. I know it wasn't because of my rivalry with Poseidon, or Neptune for that matter, but whenever I try to remember, my mind just draws a blank.

"Why can't I remember the reason I started watching him?" I asked aloud. _'If you want to remember something from your past, why not I show you through your dreams?'_ A voice said in my mind. "Morpheus? Why do you want to help me?" I asked. _'I want to know why all of the Gods started watching young Aiden. For me, it's because he's an incredible individual who's both amazing at everything he does and is extremely loving towards those he cares for.'_ Morpheus said. I began to think about his reasoning for wanting to help me, and decided that I might as well allow him to do so. "Okay, let me get onto my bed before we start." I said, walking up the stairs and into my room on the second floor.

When I got to my room, I got underneath my covers. "Okay, I'm ready Morpheus." I said._'Okay, let's start with when you found out about Neptune dating your grand daughter.'_ Morpheus said, and soon enough, I felt myself fall asleep before I was brought to a scene that I remembered all to well.

**~Aiden~**

**~Artemis' Tent~**

When I woke up, I looked around the strange room I was in before my eyes rested on a woman using me as a pillow. I then noticed four black feathery wings wrapped around me and the woman. As I looked at the woman, I could see her head turn, and when I caught sight of her face, all of the memories of the previous day flooded into my mind. I remembered singing to her a song my mother had written for me. It was the first time I'd done that for someone other than my mom, and at the moment I did, it just felt right. I remembered her falling asleep in my arms and when the Moon began to set, I flashed us back to her tent so I could put her to bed, but when I set her down on her bed, she started flailing around, reaching in random directions until she found my arm.

As soon as she grabbed my arm, she pulled me onto her bed with strength that only a Goddess would have, then latched onto me. I tried to leave her bed once, but as soon as I tried to move, I heard her start crying. She mumbled, "Please don't leave me." in her sleep. I felt my heart clench when she said this. After that, I leaned forward a bit and kissed her forehead and said, "Don't worry. I'll never leave you. You mean to much to me for me to ever do that. If I was forced to leave you, I don't know what I'd do with myself." I paused before leaning next to her ear and continuing. "You're the one who rules me. You will always be the one I follow." I stopped for a few moments, watching as she shivered slightly because of my breath. "Artemis, I..." As soon as I got to this memory, I felt Artemis begin to stir.

I looked down at the Goddess who looked up at me, then down at herself, then back at me as her face flushed a bright red. "W-What did I do last night? Please don't tell me we-we had sex..." She whispered. I cocked my head slightly. "Uh... what's sex?" I asked her, causing her face to flush even brighter, if that was even possible. "Why aren't we wearing shirts? Also, what happened after I fell asleep on your...chest...?" She asked, getting quieter near the end of her question. "Well, as for why we aren't wearing shirts, I have no idea. For what happened after you fell asleep on my chest, I continued to watch the Moon set, singing a bit more before I brought you here where I got you into bed, but you grabbed my arm and pulled me onto your bed with you. You then latched onto me and wouldn't let me leave. When I tried to leave, you started crying and said, 'Please don't leave me.' Not sure why you were crying, or why you said that, but I stayed next to you. I may or may not have said a few things while you slept and I also may or may not have kissed your forehead." I told her, reciting as much as I could remember.

"Uh...okay. Can you look away for a few minutes? I want to change without you looking at me." She asked, to which I nodded my head. I got off the bed, but before I could turn away from her, I heard the tent flap open, followed by a couple girls screaming. Then, I heard Artemis scream while I looked between Autumn and a few other Girl Scouts then at Artemis who brought her blanket up to hide her chest. _Part of me feels like this is going to be a problem._ I thought to myself. "Lady Artemis?! What are you doing with this _boy_?!" I heard Autumn exclaim. I could see Artemis' face turn bright red as she looked down.

"Artemis needs to change. Could you guys let me pass so I can give her some privacy? It's not appropriate for a guy to be in the same room as a girl changing." I said, walking up to the tent flap, trying to leave. "Oh, no you don't! You need to explain what you and Lady Artemis were doing!" One of the other Girl Scouts said. I groaned as I prepared myself to recite what happened the previous night, again. "Artemis saved my life so I took her to my favorite beach were I sang to her. When she fell asleep, I brought her here and tried to leave, but she wouldn't let me. She grabbed me, pulled me onto her bed than latched onto me. When I tried to leave, she started crying and pleaded for me not to leave. I kissed her forehead, said that I'd never leave her and that I would follow her anywhere. I also said that I loved her. That's all that happened. Happy?" I said, then pushed past them as I walked towards my tent not realizing what I had just done.

When I got to my tent, I went inside and towards my room where I found that my necklaces were off of my body. "Oh, shit." I said as I quickly grabbed them and put them on. "Oh, shit. Oh, shit. Oh, shit! I need to talk to mom soon!" I screamed as I frantically grabbed a pair of clothes then jumped into the shower. When I got into the shower, I turned it as cold as possible then groaned as I realized why Artemis had to save me. _Why the hell are necklaces so easy to take off?! I mean, I need to keep these on otherwise I'm going to burn up and die!_ I screamed in my head. I then screamed out loud, punching the wall in my bathroom, creating a small dent in it before it instantly fixed itself. The thing is, my Mom had these necklaces made and enchanted so that my body temperature wouldn't go up drastically and cause my heart to beat even faster than it should.

Last night, I didn't have my necklaces on and had a heart attack combined with a heat stroke. I don't remember who pulled my necklaces off, but all I know is that someone did before running out of my tent. The only sight of the person I got was their dark green camouflaged outfit and black boots. On their back was a large wooden bow with equally large arrows. I spent a fairly large amount of time trying to figure out who that was, but I couldn't get anything. It wasn't one of the Hunters since no one besides Artemis wields such a large bow. It wasn't any of the other Gods since only a few of them wielded bows, and none were like the one I had seen last night.

I thought about Titans, who would obviously have a motive to kill me, but I already killed the Titan of the Hunt. No one else would have been able to sneak up on me. I even thought about the Giants, but quickly decided that they wouldn't try anything since I killed a few of their brothers without too much effort. _Who would have any motive to try and kill me?_ I thought as I got out of the shower and put on my familiar dark grey cargo pants, black and brown hiking boots, black long sleeve t-shirt and finally, my jacket to cover my wings. I decided I had to cut a few slits into my shirt so that my wings wouldn't be cramped underneath both my shirt and jacket.

After I got dressed, I walked out of my tent and went towards the Dinning Hall, getting ready to give the Girl Scouts their breakfast before I had to do my chores. When I got inside, I noticed that everyone was sitting their silently, staring blankly at me as I got in front of the tables. "Uh, you guys ready for breakfast?" I asked, a little bothered that they'd gone from loving my food to suddenly not wanting to talk to me about getting more. "Oh, did you guys eat to much last night? I supposed I did..." I was about to finish when I heard one of their stomachs growl. "Never mind. Someone's hungry. What would you like to have, miss? Would you like pancakes, scrambled eggs, breakfast burritos, pop tarts, oat meal or what?" I asked, but again, I wasn't given a reply.

"How about I just conjure you guys a buffet and you can choose what you want from that... I still need to go do my chores." I said, closing my eyes as I conjured a buffet of food for the Girl Scouts to choose from. I then left the tent and started cleaning the Hunt's clothes. Within a few minutes, the large pile of clothes was done and I was able to move onto sharpening their arrows and making sure each of their bows was in pristine condition. A little less than 10 minutes later, I was done with their weapons and then had free time until lunch. I started walking around aimlessly, occasionally getting stared at by a Hunter before they were pulled into one of the numerous tents in their camp.

Finally around lunch time, I did the same thing I did for breakfast and conjured a bunch of food for everyone to choose from, this time adding different meals like what they had for dinner last night and other things like mac and cheese, tacos, burritos, lasagna, and a few different flavors of cake and ice cream. "Vestra frui cibum." I said, turning around and leaving the tent. I honestly hope they knew I just told them 'Enjoy your meal' and don't think I just told them to fuck off. _Eh, oh well. I'll deal with that when the time comes. Hopefully they just forgive me for whatever I did since I gave them cake and ice-cream._ I thought to myself as I walked towards Artemis' tent, knocking on the pole outside to see if I could get her attention.

"Come in." I heard her say from inside. "Hey Artemis. I need to talk to you for a seco..." I immediately stopped when I saw who Artemis was talking to. Across from where she was sitting was a buff man with jet black hair, a green and blue eye, tan skin who wore a green camouflaged outfit and black boots. Next to him was a large wooden bow and a set of equally large arrows. "Aiden, this is Orion. Orion, this is the Hunt's Guardian, Aiden." She said, smiling at Orion who smiled back at her with pearly white teeth.

All of a sudden, as she continued to speak, I couldn't hear what she was saying. The beating of my heart became too loud for me to hear what she was saying. I could feel my body start to heat up as I remembered the stories of Orion and Artemis. The stories of how Artemis fell for a man who's skill with a bow matched her own. The stories of how she gave herself to this man because she loved him. I felt a tear start to slide down my cheek as my heart beat became too eradic. I then watched as Artemis leaned forward and was mere seconds from kissing Orion as I felt my heart break. Time seemed to slow down as my body temperature started to rise even more, causing Artemis and Orion to stop from kissing. "What's the matter boy? Are you wanting to kiss your mistress? You know that harboring that kind of feeling towards your master is forbidden, right?" He said, laughing as his forehead started to sweat profusely.

"Holy Zeus, why is it so hot in here?" Orion exclaimed, wiping the sweat from his brow. I then watched as Artemis placed her hand on his, forcing him to look at her. "Oh, that's just Aiden. He's dying right now." She said, smiling at me warmly. I wanted to vomit as I watched her get so close to Orion. I wanted to punch Orion for touching her. Most of all, I wanted to crawl in a hole and die. Artemis was acting like Aphrodite with someone. She said that I should never act like that because it was bad. _Artemis said that was bad. She's flirting right now. Artemis is being bad. Artemis is never bad. Orion is making Artemis be a bad person._ As my thoughts circled back to Orion influencing Artemis negatively, I screamed as my vision flooded red. I could feel my heart threaten to give out as the heat coming from my body started to become unbearable.

I grabbed Orion with one hand and shot my wings out from my jacket and shot into the air. As Orion and I shot into the air, I watched as he began clawing at his throat. I watched as his skin started to boil before slowly coming off of his body and dripping onto the ground hundreds of feet below us. "**You're turning Artemis into a bad person.**" I said in a voice I hadn't heard before. "**She's doing bad things because you're near her.**" I continued. "**I said I'd protect her. I told her I'd follow her. I told her I loved her. I'm not going to stand by and watch you corrupt the woman I love.**" I told him as I watched his eyes show an immense amount of fear for me.

I proceeded to rip off his right arm, dropping in to the ground, then his left, then his right leg and finally his left leg. By now, the rest of his body was boiling from the amount of heat I was giving off. As my vision started to go black, I said a few simple words to the man before me. "**I'll see you in Tartarus, bitch.**" After I said these words, I snapped his neck then started to fall back to the ground at an increasing rate in speed. When I was a few stories from hitting the ground, directly where my tent was, I passed out cold.

**~Artemis~**

**~Moments After Aiden Left Tent Earlier That Morning~**

After Aiden had left, I stared at where he had once been, then I looked at Autumn and the other two Hunters looking at me, equally shocked. "D-Did he just...?" I stuttered. I looked at Autumn as I asked this. She confirmed this by nodding her head. "Aiden loves Lady Artemis..." One of the Hunters said. "We were just trying to play a prank on him... We took your shirts so that you'd freak out, but we didn't expect him to react like that..." The last Hunter said.

I then shot a glare at my three Hunters before sighing. "Okay, just try to give him some space. He should be getting ready for the day then will be in the Dinning Hall, so wait for him there. After Breakfast, try to talk to him and tell him what you were trying to do. I know he'll understand." I told them. They each nodded their heads before leaving me. As I got up and started to change into a different pair of clothes, I felt something stir in my stomach, as if trying to warn me of a bad omen. I decided to ignore it since last night was bad enough. I almost lost Aiden because of his body heating up too much. _When's Athena going to tell me what happened? Didn't she say she was going to talk to Julia about what happened?_ I thought to myself as I heard someone rapping their knuckle on my post.

The way the person was knocking on my tent seemed really familiar, and I felt as if a part of me was filled with dread. "Yes?" I asked. Immediately, I was greeted by a figure I hated with every fiber of my being. Someone I swore I'd destroy the next time I saw them. Before me was a man in a green Camouflaged military outfit with black boots. On his back was a large bow, a little bigger than mine, and an equally large set of arrows. I felt myself go for one of my knives, by remembering they were next to my door where he was.

"Hello there, sweetie. Did you miss me?" Orion asked as he stepped forward. I tried to flash out, but I wasn't able to. I then tried to call Aiden, or someone for help, but nothing happened. "Awe, are you trying to get away? You should know that you can't. No one's coming to help you because you see, I've been enhanced." Orion said, tapping a spot on his chest. He then opened his jacket and showed me a metal plate with a large gem over his heart. "You see this? This allows me to take control over everyone be they God, demi-god, or even your pathetic Titan. You may want to flee, fight, or even talk back to me, but you can't. If one of your Hunters comes in and looks at us, they won't be able to do anything either." He continued speaking about the metal plate above his heart, but stopped as soon as he looked over to my bed.

"Oh? Were you busy with someone while I was gone?" He asked, walking towards my bed and picking up Aiden's shirt. "Hmm... this shirt is surprisingly hot." He turned to look at me. "What were you doing Artemis? Decided to give your virginity up to someone other than me?" He looked down as if disappointed. "Well, we'll just see which one of us you prefer. I swear that tonight, I will make you _mine._" He said, walking over and taking a seat next to me. "Don't worry, you're lover is coming here to see you." He said, smiling at me sinister manner. "What if he found you flirting with me? What would he do, hmm? Would that break his little heart? Oh, I want to see the look on his face when he sees us together. I'm going to make him watch me take you. I'm going to break him while I break you." He said, licking his lips.

Just then, I heard a knock on my tent and knew it was Aiden. I tried to scream at him to leave, but all that came out was "Come in." Immediately, I looked at Orion who just had a finger on his lips. "Hey, Artemis. I need to talk to you for a seco..." He began, but immediately stopped when he looked at Orion. Again, I tried to tell him to run, but I just smiled at him. "Aiden, this is Orion. Orion, this is the Hunt's Guardian, Aiden." Again, I looked at Orion to find him smiling at me. _Aiden you need to leave, now! Please, don't be here right now! I don't want to hurt you! Please, I don't want to hurt you!_ I tried to scream at him, but he was oblivious. Not like my voice would allow me to say that anyways.

I then watched a scene familiar to the one that happened yesterday take place. His skin started to become red as he clutched his chest. Orion watched him in a twisted fascination while I tried to run up and help him. I wanted to run up and take him away from here. At that moment, I didn't care about my Hunt. All that I wanted to do was to save him. Suddenly, the air became increasingly hot. A lot hotter than it was yesterday. This time, I found that Orion's eyes were wild as he stared at his brother in a way that made it clear he wanted to kill Aiden. Not just physically, but emotionally and spiritually as well.

Suddenly, I watched as my hand went and touched Orion's face, and I immediately wanted to vomit. I then felt myself lean in close to him, about to kiss his lips when out of the corner of my eye, I could see steam rising from Aiden's body. _Aiden, I'm sorry. Please, leave. I can't stop this. I can't tell you to save me. I'm hurting you and it's causing me more pain than I've ever felt in my entire life._ I thought. "What's the matter boy? Are you wanting to kiss your mistress? You know that harboring that kind of feeling towards your master is forbidden, right?" Orion said, laughing as he wiped his forehead of the large amount of sweat that was accumulating. I then felt the heat increase until just being in the same tent as Aiden was as if I was holding him again. I felt my heart clench as I watched him go through so much pain and was unable to help him, unable to make it all go away.

"Holy Zeus, why is it so hot in here?" Orion asked. I brought my hand to his cheek, forcing him to look at me as I said something I wish I'd never been forced to say. "Oh, that's just Aiden. He's dying right now." I said, looking up at Aiden and smiling at him warmly. As I did this, I felt like the most worthless person alive. Here I was, hurting the person I loved all because someone was able to control me and force me to do it. I could see the pained expression on his face before it became a stoic nothing. My mind immediately flooded with thoughts like '_Did I just kill him?!'_ and _'Please, somebody help him!'_ but nothing happened. After a few moments, I watched helplessly as Aiden let loose a scream that could have been heard by Olympus, or even Apollo now that he was above us. He then rushed forward and grabbed Orion by the neck and shot upwards, tearing a hole in my tent that immediately caught fire.

As soon as Orion was gone, I was able to get up and move freely. I ran outside my tent. "APOLLO!" I screamed. Suddenly, my brother flashed next to me. "I know. I've been trying to get here for a while now, but something's been keeping me out." He said, looking where Aiden and Orion was in the sky. I then noticed something fall to the ground, right in front of Apollo and I. I looked down to see that it was Orion's arm, ripped off his body and was burned as well as blistered so much, it barely resembled an arm. "What the hell?! Those are 4th degree burns! How hot is Aiden right now?!" Apollo screamed as a few more flashes appeared were we were. "Artemis! What the hell did you do to Aiden! I could feel his heart break so much, I literally felt like I was going to die!" Aphrodite screamed before looking at the charred arm on the ground. Immediately, she turned a light green before she began vomiting.

"Where's my son, Artemis?! Why does it feel like we're in the desert right now?!" Julia screamed. She looked over to my tent, then at the arm on the ground, before she noticed something on the ground. "Oh no. Oh, Gods, please no." She said, running forward as she picked up something that she immediately clutched close to her chest as she looked up at her son and Orion, who was now missing a few more limbs, each landing somewhere in the Camp, causing Hunters to run out of their tent's screaming. "Julia, what is it?" I asked, running towards her. When I got to her, I looked at her face to see that she was crying. "He's dying..." She whispered before she dropped to her hands and knees and started balling her eyes out.

Maria then ran up to Julia and I. "What do you mean he's dying?! He can't die!" I could see tears start to stream down her face as well. Julia turned to look at her. "Without these necklaces, Aiden's body continues to grow in heat until he burns out like a star. These necklaces were enchanted for him when he was a baby in order to combat his excessive body heat." She told us. I then understood why he was heating up last night and why I couldn't flash him out of his house. Orion was there. He took off Aiden's necklaces and was inside his tent keeping me or anyone from flashing in or out. He was trying to kill Aiden before he came after me and my Hunt.

Suddenly, there was a loud explosion in the sky, and when I looked up, I could see that Aiden was now falling back the ground, increasing speed as he continued to fall. As he was falling, he broke the sound barrier and by the time I was able to react, he'd fallen back to the ground and hit his tent, obliterating it on impact. All around me, I could see my Hunt, Maria, Julia, Athena, Apollo, Nyx as well as Aphrodite start running towards where Aiden landed. I was too shocked to move until I could feel the heat from the area continue to rise. As I took off running, I was already running faster than anyone else and soon enough, I was right over him as the tears I was crying were evaporating from my face. I could feel the heat burning my entire body, starting to cause my skin to blister and go from a pale skin color to dark brown in seconds. I picked him up and held him in my arms, rocking back and forth as I cried.

"Artemis! Remember what you did yesterday! Remember what moonlight does to him! Get him somewhere where it's night!" I heard Apollo scream. I shot my head up and tried to pinpoint where on Earth it would be night time. When I found where the Moon currently was, I flashed there with Aiden in my arms. When we appeared where the Moon currently was, we were on a beach surrounded by sandy shores and the ocean right in front of us. I then dragged his body closer and closer to the ocean in an attempt to heal him faster, but as we got closer, the ocean began to evaporate.

"I...hope...your dad's...okay with...losing some of the ocean's water." I said, struggling to bring him into the water. As soon as we were in the water, the Moon began to shine on the both of us even brighter than it had the night before. As his body began to cool down significantly, I watched him open his eyes. He looked at me, his eyes tearing up as he saw me and said, "Please, don't be bad Artemis... I don't want you to change because of him... I know you love him, but he was changing you... I h-had to kill him..." I could tell he was struggling to speak. I knew the water and the Moon's light wasn't helping him because when I looked up at the Moon, I could see it dimming. "Please...Please don't die Aiden." I began to plead for him to stay alive. His smile was weak as his eyes tried to focus on me.

"I want you to know that I love you, Artemis. I've been in love with you since we first met. Since then... I've wanted to follow you. I wanted to be by your side..." He started coughing up blood at this point. "At least, I got to meet you, My Moon." He said as the life left his eyes. I could see his skin start to become pale as his body became cold. My mind began to race as I felt my heart pound so hard against my chest, I felt as if it was going to burst at any moment. "N-no..." I said as tears streamed down my face. "No..." I continued. At that moment, I wanted to die. Everything in my life didn't matter. I'd just lost the one good man in this world all because I allowed myself to not be on alert for Orion. As I looked at Aiden's dead body, I felt my heart clench before I let out all of my anguish in a single scream.

I screamed up into the heaven's, cursing the fates for taking Aiden away from me. I cursed Thanatos for taking him before I could tell him I loved him. I cursed him for taking Aiden at all. Aiden was supposed to be a Titan. Because he was a Titan, he wasn't supposed to just die. He should have been able to heal, or at least recover more than he did. As I was thinking about this, I watched as Aiden's body glowed a bright silver before he crumbled into silver ash, drifting away with the current. "No." I whispered as his ashes drifted away. I then heard a couple of people crying from behind me and as I turned to face them, I found myself looking at Julia, Maria, as well as a few others. However, from behind them came a voice I recognized and new the rest of that evening wouldn't go well.

"My son..." Neptune said as he walked towards the shore, stepping in front of everyone else. Without warning, the sea started to rage behind me. "**Who did this to my son?**" Neptune asked in a tone that sent a shiver down my spine. "The person who did this to your son is dead. Aiden killed Orion before he died himself." I told him, a bit fearful of how he would act with both of his son's dying. However, the sea calmed as Neptune took a deep breath as a few tears escaped his eyes. "What did he do this time?" He asked me. I took a deep breath before I answered him. "He tried to kill Aiden twice. When he failed the first time, he used some kind of device to control me and make me say and do terrible things to Aiden. When I touched Orion, Aiden snapped. He lunged at Orion, grabbed his neck, and shot out of my tent and into the sky where he proceeded to rip Orion's limbs off, tossing them aside. When He was finished with Orion, he fell back to the ground and obliterated his tent. I brought him here in an attempt to see if the Moon's light would heal him again like it did yesterday, but it didn't work..." I could feel myself start to cry as I hated myself for my own incompetence. "He died in my arms..." I finished, feeling my tears start to fall. I failed him. He loved me and I failed him. I was disgusted with myself for being so easily manipulated by Orion and forced to watch the only man I ever loved die in my arms.


	5. Chapter 5

Hello to anyone reading this.

I know that I have not updated any of my stories in a long time, but that is because work and school have become a little more hectic. For anyone who'd like to know, I've recently started a so I can create and publish stories as well as illustrate different characters from these books. If you'd like to support me on , then I'd sincerely appreciate the help.

In the future, I will hopefully be creating animations based on stories like The Beginning of the Guardian, From Nothing, Starting from Nothing, as well as many more that I have not published on this platform. However, I do not have enough time in my day to be doing all of this and therefore will need money to hire others to assist me in this endeavor.

This is the link for any interested: posts/30609497

If you're joining from this link, I would like you to send me a personal message on so I can send you a link to my Discord where we can chat about these stories.

Sincerely,

DanteApollyon5680, or AshenUnknown, (AKA: Anthony Devine)


	6. Chapter 6

Hey everyone reading this. If you want to get in contact with me, you can join my Discord,here , or you can look at my Blog here. If you read the last chapter I sent out, then I apologize to those who were offended by it.

Like I said before, if you'd like to get in contact with me about the future of stories like From Nothing, The Beginning of the Guardian, or any other story then go to one of those places.

-DanteApollyon5680


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